


A Thin Line

by MsFaust



Category: Static Shock, West Side Story (1961)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Gen, Semi-Fusion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-02
Updated: 2017-05-02
Packaged: 2018-10-27 02:38:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10799955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsFaust/pseuds/MsFaust
Summary: A West Side Story/Static Shock fusion.Things went very differently at the rumble, changing the Jets, the Sharks, and Manhattan forever.





	A Thin Line

"So, we're all agreed, then."

Little more than a week ago, none of the group now gathered around a table inside Doc's store would have imagined they'd be in this situation. But they didn't expect the strange events that had happened during and after the rumble.

The police had shown up--how they had known was still a mystery--and a couple of officers had fired warning shots, which hit a set of canisters, causing a strange gas to be released. The gas had dramatically transformed the gang members and their girlfriends, who had come to watch the fight/out of concern for their men.

Six in particular had since chosen to use their new powers as crimefighters, especially since most of the others had chosen to do the opposite. Banding together as the Rocketeers, each had picked an alias:

-Tony, able to generate and control electricity, took the name Thunderbolt.  
-Maria, wielding formidable telekinetic powers, chose Cerebra.  
-Riff, healed of his injury and made elastic, went by Stretch.  
-Action, who could now move at incredible speeds, became Redline.  
-Ice, now superhumanly strong and tough, picked Diesel.  
-And Anybodys, endowed with a bird-woman form capable of flight and a sonic shriek, decided on Harpy.

"Bernardo didn't become leader of the Sharks through dumb luck," Tony continued. "He's planning something, I'm sure of it."

"Well, he hasn't wasted any time recruiting," Ice commented.

"Both Jets and Sharks have joined that Rising Sons gang he's started," agreed Riff, stretching an arm over to the counter to grab another milkshake. "It ain't about race no more. It's about power."

Maria nodded. "Until the Big Bang took place, Bernardo felt that being Puerto Rican put us at a disadvantage, and that we should return home. Now that he has powers, he feels that he and his new gang are unstoppable."

"Guess we'll have to prove 'em wrong." Anybodys slurped her own milkshake.

"When they do show up, we'll be ready," said Ice determinedly. "I know Austin's up for a fight."

"Hey, nobody calls me Austin but my mother!"

Everyone laughed as Action swatted at Ice in jest.  
\------------  
"Not too long ago, I told Anita we should go back to Puerto Rico, but she said that life was better in America. It seems she was right all along."

Were his mouth visible, it would be easy to see Bernardo--or Umbra, as he was now known--was smiling. The former gang members--Sharks and Jets alike--could hear how enthusiastic he was, and they were becoming just as excited by his words.

"When you awoke after the Big Bang, and discovered what had happened to you, many of you were frightened by the changes. I, however, embraced my new powers, for I realized that with the powers we now wield, who can stop us from running the streets? Can the other gangs? Can the police?"

"No!" shouted Chino, now a human-shark hybrid using the apt name of Landshark.

"It doesn't matter who we were before," the former leader of the Sharks declared. "Jets or Sharks, we all were changed that night. We're all more than human now. Those old lines mean nothing."

"So let's get rid of them!" Anita, now known as Fireball, held up her hands and created several spheres of fire. "The Rising Sons will be top gang in Manhattan!"

At this, the gathered metas let out fervent cheers.  
\------------  
While this was going on, two figures stood atop a skyscraper, looking out over the city. One was a man, clad in a red and white striped bodysuit with a blue star over his chest. The other, a woman, wore a top and knee-length skirt in the same colors.

"This doesn't look good," the man said. "These Rising Sons could mean trouble for Manhattan, if not the entire city."

"And we still have no idea where that stuff came from," his companion added. "The police are taking a look at it, though. And so is Cerberus."

"Good."

There was silence for a while. Then, the woman spoke.

"Tell me something, Cap. What do you think about the Rocketeers?"

"I'm not sure, Ms. Victory," Captain Patriot replied. "The other Compatriots seem split down the middle. On the one hand, they're clearly trying to do some good. On the other hand, they're probably still kids."

"We weren't much older when Uncle Sam called our names," Ms. Victory pointed out. "Besides, we volunteered. They never asked for their powers."

"I guess only time will tell," he mused, taking to the air. "Come on. Let's go find the others."


End file.
